Burns Night this year was an occasion for Scotland's Last Supper - the last before the September referendum.

Burns Night gatherings are, traditionally, occasions to celebrate a Scottish icon and his legacy. Robust debate is, typically, limited to whether or not the haggis needs a drop of whisky.

In this year of all years, however, there was no political ceasefire in honour of the Bard. The talk at the table was of referendum and what the future holds beyond the vote on breaking away.

Why? To be honest, it was largely down to media interest.

In this historic year, it is a significant punctuation point in the Scottish calendar that presents an early opportunity to chart opinion in the run-up to the Independence referendum on September 18.

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TV crews from around the world duly descended on Burns events across Scotland to gauge opinion.

Sky News attended Burns Suppers at Maitland Bowling Club in North Edinburgh and at West Linton Golf Club in the Scottish Borders.

We conducted a referendum straw poll of those in attendance, using three specially-made glass containers embossed with "Y" for Yes to Scottish independence, "N" for No and a question mark for the undecided.

In an unscientific poll, 127 people put a plastic chip in the container of their choice and the result was as follows:

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Undecided: 19 Yes: 16 No: 92

Meanwhile, an exclusive poll for Sky News suggests there are more Britons vehemently opposed to Scottish independence than there are who strongly support it.

Of those outside of Scotland who were asked to imagine waking up and finding the country independent, 46% said they would not mind, 34% said they would be dismayed, and 11% said they would be delighted.

When adults in Scotland were asked the same question, there was more evidence of the challenge facing Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond and the Yes campaign - with 46% saying they would be dismayed and 25% saying they would be delighted.

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:: The YouGov poll questioned more than 2,500 people across Scotland, Wales and England.